do you want to invest in a country whose government isn't functioning? i don't think so. so, we could get a big market reaction, a drop in the stock market, and that might scare people. >> "the rachel maddow show" week nights at 9:00 eastern right here on msnbc, the place for politics. >>> home prices on the rise, syria's head of preventing defections decides to defect. your headlines are straight ahead. plus, connecting the dots on sonia sotomayor, health care and a fine. you're watching "first look." >>> some stories making news this morning. toyota says it's reached a more than $1 billion settlement in a case involving unintended acceleration problems in its vehicles. it's one of the largest settlements involving automobile defects in u.s. history. >>> supreme court justice sonia sotomayor has denied two retailers' requests to block part of the federal health care law that requires insurance coverage for contraceptives as of january 1st. the companies, which say the law violates their religious beliefs, face a $1.3 million daily fine if they don't comply. >>> 94-year-o